[ FAMILY ] t i e s. - a tayvis story.

[ ONE ]

[ FOUR YEARS LATER ]

APRIL 2027

"Baby," Taylor said to grab Travis' attention. He had his face buried in her neck as he rubbed her pregnant tummy. This had been his favorite pastime since her bump started to pop out more. He hummed into her neck as a way to acknowledge her. "Can you get me some chocolate, please?" He hummed again, his way of agreeing to her request. He left a kiss on her neck and rubbed her stomach in last time before he started on his journey to find her recent pregnancy craving.

"Daddy, I want to go with you!" Koa said, running behind Travis and grabbing his hand.

"What's wrong?" Brittany asked, noticing the look on Taylor's face.

"That man is staring in this direction," Taylor said, directing her eyes in the direction of the man she was referring to. She hated when people stared, and she hated even more when it was a man staring at their family, which consisted of so many little girls.

Taylor kept her eyes on the man, and Brittany whispered something to Patrick, who, in turn, whispered something to Chris.

"What's going on?" Selena asked, walking over with her three-year-old daughter, Magic, on her hip.

"Weird man keeps looking over here," Taylor informed her. She bent down, lifting her three-year-old daughter, Khi. Khi instantly wanted comfort and laid her head down on her mother's shoulder. Taylor rubbed her younger daughter's back. The little girl could sense when things weren't right around her, and her moods usually reflected that. She could tell her mother was a bit annoyed and distressed.

Before she knew it, Taylor felt Patrick's hands on her, pushing her behind him. She noticed Chris do the same with Selena and Brittany. Taylor directed her eyes to the woman coming near them. "Ali? Lena?" the woman said, looking at them both as if she had seen a ghost.

"LeLe?" Taylor said first, recognizing the voice more than the face of the person saying her name. "Oh my God," she said. Hearing the name she had said, Patrick and Chris moved over, knowing they no longer needed to be in their protection mode. They both stepped aside, letting the girl get to Taylor, Selena, and Brittany.

"Oh my God." Selena chimed in. "It's been so long." Taylor and Selena were both shocked to see the woman. It had been over 20 years since Taylor had seen her last. Last held her. Last kissed her. She didn't even know what she wanted to say to her. She thought she would have the words if she was to ever see her again, but it was clear she didn't.

Lele walked closer to the pair, engulfing Taylor in a hug first. With a baby still in her arm, Taylor wrapped the woman with her empty arm. "I can't believe it." She finally said.

"I thought you were dead." Lele told her, not wanting to release her ex love. She rubbed Taylor's back but soon let her go before moving to Selena.

"I was always y'all's third wheel," Selena said with a laugh, hugging Lele for the first time since she left Philadelphia to move to Argentina to teach children English over ten years ago.

"Ky, who are these people?" The man that had been staring from across the boat approached and asked.

"Jase, remember when I would tell you about my friends Ali and Lena and how we lost touch once they left Philly." Kylie asked her husband, Jason.

"Yeah, yeah," Jason remembered a couple of stories Kylie had told about her old friends. But of course, she told so many stories that they ran together, and he only remembered bits and pieces. "Nice to finally meet the girls I have heard so much about," Jason said to both Taylor and Selena, extending his hand for them to shake. 

"Why were you staring at us?" Taylor asked, ignoring his hand. She felt uncomfortable around him for some reason. She couldn't explain the feeling she was feeling, only that it existed and she had it. 

"I thought I saw someone with you that I thought I knew. No big deal," Jason tried to say nonchalantly. Taylor gave the man the once-over, but she directed her attention back to Kylie. 

"Why would I be dead?" Taylor asked her old friend, her ex-girlfriend.

"Because I heard that the guy you were seeing was dead and that you were missing, so I figured you might have been gone too," Kylie said. She pulled Taylor into another hug. She was so happy to see her again. "What do you mean you were staring at them?" Kylie said, looking over at Jason again. 

"Mommy! We got it for you!" Koa came running back to where Taylor and the group were, handing her a bar of chocolate. Taylor put Khi down and took the candy from her 6 year old. 

"Thank you, baby." She told her. Bending down to kiss the top of her head. "Where's daddy?" Taylor looked at Jason, who was staring at Koa. Taylor moved Koa behind her slightly, once again weirded out by Jason's behavior.

"Ky, doesn't she kind of look like Wyatt?" Jason whispered to Kylie, as he looked at Koa. The little girl looked like his own daughter, but only with blue eyes instead of green ones. He couldn't take his eyes away from the little girl's features, trying to pinpoint how and why she looked so much like his own little girl. 

"A little bit, I guess." Kylie replied before returning to talking to Taylor and Selena, not even really thinking about what Jason was saying. Taylor glanced over at the man, who was still looking at her daughter. 

"Can you not be so creepy." Taylor asked him. 

"Sorry," Jason replied, trying to divert his eyes, but they kept falling on Koa and Khi. 

"Here, Pretty. I got you more than just that one. And I found some other things you might like." Travis said, sliding his arm around Taylor while handing her the bad. He kissed the top of her head. 

"Thank you, baby." Taylor turned to him, standing on her toes and kissing his lips quickly. 

"We're meeting friends already?" Travis asked, noticing the woman that Taylor had been talking to with Selena. 

"Yeah, an old friend," she said with pure excitement and joy in her voice. "Do you remember me ta..." Taylor started to say but was cut off by Jason's voice. 

"Travis..." Travis looked at the man, who was saying his name. He barely recognized him. He hadn't seen him since he was 16 years old. He had gained weight and obviously had facial hair that resembled Santa Claus.

"Jason..." Travis said back. His tone was cold and slightly annoyed. 

"Babe, do you know this weird man?" Taylor asked Travis. Travis had pulled her close again, this time more protectively than in his usual affectionate and clingy way. He had moved both of his girls behind him. "He keeps staring at the girls, and it's making me uncomfortable."

"Yeah, he's my brother," Travis replied.

"You have a brother?" Kylie asked, looking at Jason. She had never heard of him having a brother, and as many times as she had been to his family's homes, there was no trace of him having any siblings, let alone a brother close in age to him. He lived his life as if he were an only child, and knowing that fact made Kylie instantly uncomfortable.